GeekDad Visits the Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines

If you happen to end up near Des Moines, Iowa with young kids, take them to the zoo. I happened to be in Des Moines with my young kids and they had a great time at the Blank Park Zoo. The zoo was originally a children’s zoo and that history is still apparent. That means […]
baby giraffe

If you happen to end up near Des Moines, Iowa with young kids, take them to the zoo. I happened to be in Des Moines with my young kids and they had a great time at the Blank Park Zoo.

The zoo was originally a children's zoo and that history is still apparent. That means the Blank Park Zoo is really enjoyable for younger kids. As a parent traveling on the road, if my kids are happy then I'm happy.

The Blank Park Zoo places a big emphasis on interaction with the animals and having the visitors feed their animals.

Our first attempt at feeding was the Budgie Bog In, where you can feed the birds. Parakeets are not the wildest of animals, but put a couple hundred in a cage and it's a little more exciting when you step inside. My kids had blast feeding the birds with a stick of food.

I found the koi pond to be a bit disturbing. There was an audible roar of fish slapping against each other whenever food was dropped into the water. The koi were literally climbing on top of each other to get to the food. However, my six-year old thought it was one of the best parts of the zoo.

No, they don't allow the visitors to feed the big cats. I may have enjoyed throwing some raw meat for the lions. I think that would have been a bit PG-13 for this G-Rated zoo. Even a meal for the smaller serval would be a bit much.

If you want the experience of feeding an exotic African animal, you can feed a giraffe. My two-year old enjoyed holding a big piece of lettuce up as snack for the African beasts. I even found it interesting to get up close, having never had the chance to get this close to a giraffe. I never knew how long and purple a giraffe's tongue is.

There is also a conventional feeding area in the zoo with more domestic goats and llamas. They added a Zebu to the mix. Both of kids were too scared to put their hands close to the mouth of this large beast.

A zoo experience is very different for younger kids, older kids, and adults. It's hard to make it interesting for everyone. The Blank Park Zoo has focuses on appealing to the younger kids by getting them close to the animals. Even if some of the animals are not particularly wild or exotic.

For the compliance and risk management geeks, the zoo had a black swan. How unexpected!